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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/27162232">Window to Memory</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/fauxtales/pseuds/fauxtales'>fauxtales</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Kingdom Hearts (Video Games)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Character Study, Denial, Emotionally Repressed, Gen, Memories, Mild Angst, implied sorikai - Freeform</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-07 00:14:47</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,156</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/27162232</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/fauxtales/pseuds/fauxtales</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Sora stares out the window. The rain patters against it gently, a soft rhythm that comforts him more than he expects. He has been away from Destiny Islands for so long, he’s forgotten how much he loved the rain.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>5</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>10</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Window to Memory</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Sora stares out the window. The rain patters against it gently, a soft rhythm that comforts him more than he expects. He has been away from Destiny Islands for so long, he’s forgotten how much he loved the rain.</p>
<p>The rain on Destiny Islands isn’t like this rain. Sometimes it is, a small shower sweeping across the larger island, gently watering the ground and giving the already green landscape a sense of new growth. Those types of rain are rare, though. No, more often than not the rain comes in suddenly and hard, a storm that can be seen approaching from miles away suddenly hitting the island and dumping water down. The winds will pick up and tear leaves from trees and clouds will block out the light of the sun and a bluish shadow will be cast on the world. Sometimes, it will rain so much Sora would swear the whole island has been dragged underwater. Then, just as fast as it appeared, the rain will be gone, swept away by the winds to pour down on a different island.</p>
<p>That is the rain that Sora misses. The quick, sudden downpours that would come in succession, turning the world into a roar of sound. This world that they are on now is too quiet in the rain. Rather than bring a cacophony of sound, the orchestra of the world, the rain here seems to dampen it all. The streets outside the cafe window seems a million miles away for all the sound Sora can hear from it.</p>
<p>Sora isn’t entirely sure why they are on this world in the first place. Goofy and Donald had some sort of errand to run for King Mickey and ran off immediately, leaving Sora to his own devices. The cold drizzle of the rain forced Sora indoors, shivering and unused to this sort of climate. It’s hard to get used to any sort of climate when you’re traveling to such drastically different places the way they do. If they stay here too long, Sora might need to get a raincoat.</p>
<p>A blond teenager rolls by the window on a skateboard. Sora has a flash of memory that isn’t his: late afternoon light on a clocktower; the salty-sweet taste of ice cream; a flicker of laughter that dies as soon as it is perceived. Black hair, blond hair, red hair. Sensations so familiar and yet removed. Sora doesn’t realize he's holding his breath until his vision begins to swim.</p>
<p>This is no longer an unfamiliar experience. Ever since Roxas came back and fully accepted Sora, he’s had flashes like this. Their memories are all tangled up now, and though Sora finds he can’t choose to remember things from Roxas’s life, they come to him in quiet moments, flicking to the forefront of his mind any time he - Roxas? - is reminded of something. Every once in a while, he’ll get flashes of other memories, memories that he is sure are not Roxas’s but couldn’t possibly be his own. Those are more confusing.</p>
<p>The girl that took Sora’s order at the counter reminded him of Kairi and someone else. Someone he doesn’t remember. He’s not sure what about her reminded him of Kairi; she doesn’t look all that much like her. Perhaps it was the kindness in her smile. Perhaps it was the way she tilted her head. Sora has no way of knowing.</p>
<p>He sees Kairi in everyone these days. Kairi and Riku both, actually. He’s been away from them for so long, hasn’t seen either of them since the Mark of Mastery exam. In these quiet moments, when all he has are his thoughts, Sora wonders if he should have waited a bit longer before running off. He had things to attend to, thoughts to sort out after the events of the exam - or rather, the broken exam - and he couldn’t seem to look Riku in the eye. But still. If he had stayed, maybe things would have worked out differently. Maybe they could have travelled together, all three of them. Maybe…</p>
<p>But no. Kairi has to train to actually wield her keyblade and Riku is an actual Master now. He has other things to attend to. It wouldn’t have changed anything. Except… except Sora would have been able to see them. He would have been able to express his feelings. Well, maybe. Probably not. He’s too much of a coward to do that. Riku and Kairi are too precious to him to risk breaking what they already have. No, better to wait until this is all over.</p>
<p>Is it raining on Destiny Islands? Wherever Riku is? Are they also stopping to stare at the raindrops as they fall down, blanketing the world in quiet or setting it to music? Sora hopes so. He likes the idea of all three of them watching the rain together, far apart but close in that moment, tied together by an invisible string. Their hearts connected by an unbreakable bond.</p>
<p>A soft smile and an air of protection. Blue hair, brown hair, blond hair. Warmth and comfort and safety. Sora doesn’t know whose memory this is, but it makes him smile. There’s an ache in his chest, the feeling of missing people he never knew with all the fiber of his being, and Sora has to take a sip of his cooling tea to push back the lump in his throat. He presses his hand to his chest, his smile turning sad.</p>
<p>“I’ll find them,” Sora whispers. It’s a promise to himself, to the people connected to him, to the heart he can feel pressing against his own. He’s still not sure he fully understands the way his heart has connected to people he doesn’t know, but that doesn’t matter; he doesn’t need to understand. He just needs to try.</p>
<p>Besides, how could he ignore an ache like this? It’s so like his own. Having to experience it for himself is bad enough, but with two - three? Five? He doesn’t know how many he’s directly carrying anymore - piling on top of each other in his chest, it is impossible to ignore. There are moments when the feeling has him on his knees, hands pressed to his eyes as he tries not to cry, as the world swirls around him and whatever set the feelings off looms above him.</p>
<p>Through the rain outside the window, Sora spots his friends. Goofy and Donald are talking, rushing through the rain as they head for the cafe Sora waits in. Sora pushes the ache in his chest to the side, puts a happier smile on his face, and sips at his tea. He’ll have time to feel those feelings later. Right now, he needs to smile for his friends so they can move on with their mission, so someday Sora can heal the ache instead. He doesn’t have time for tears.</p>
<p>This ship runs on smiles after all.</p>
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